


harder to breathe

by joshllyman



Series: sportsfest 2020 fills [33]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Established Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou, M/M, Mentioned Bokuto Koutarou, Multi, Nonbinary Akaashi Keiji, Nonbinary Character, Other, Polyamory, Porn With Plot, Porn with Feelings, Pro Volleyball Player Bokuto Koutarou, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:46:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25513768
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joshllyman/pseuds/joshllyman
Summary: He keeps an eye on Akaashi for the rest of the trek. In the several months they’ve been living together since Bokuto went abroad for training, they haven’t often talked about missing him, but Tetsurou knows it has to be like missing a limb for both of them. They’ve been together for almost five years, living together almost three, and while Bokuto has had to travel to follow his dream before, it’s never been this far or this long. They had been kind enough to invite Tetsurou to live in their guest room for his final year of university, since Akaashi would be alone and Tetsurou’s roommate had bailed on him after two years.If it makes it more difficult for Tetsurou to deal with his long-standing love for both of them, then that’s his own problem. Akaashi and Bokuto shouldn’t have to deal with that.
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou/Kuroo Tetsurou, Akaashi Keiji/Kuroo Tetsurou
Series: sportsfest 2020 fills [33]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1789072
Comments: 18
Kudos: 118





	harder to breathe

**Author's Note:**

> sportsfest fill: prompt was "harder to breathe" by maroon 5  
> this is significantly more romantic than you'd expect from that title

The temptation to reach out and take Akaashi’s elbow is strong, but somehow, Tetsurou resists.

He adjusts the sacks on the arm between them down into his hand so it’s easier to avoid. His job, at the moment, is to navigate and ensure they don’t walk into the street at the wrong time. Akaashi stays in step with him even though they’re occupied looking at their phone. Tetsurou’s not sure how they do it, except he’s seen them do it all the time with Bokuto. He’d always assumed it was because they’re so attuned to Bokuto that they can sense his step without having to see him, but several months of grocery shopping together, among other activities, have demonstrated that it’s just some innate ability Akaashi possesses, because they do so just as easily with Tetsurou. He’s got most of the groceries, but the bags that Akaashi is carrying slide down their arm as they lock their phone and put it in their pocket.

“Koutarou says he misses us and loves us both,” they announce, and Tetsurou turns his head in time to see Akaashi giving him a small smile. 

Tetsurou’s answering smile is a little tight, but Akaashi probably doesn’t notice. “I miss him, too,” he says.

Akaashi looks sad at that. Tetsurou doesn’t know why.

“How much longer until his next break?” Tetsurou asks, hoping to bring the smile back to Akaashi’s face.

“Three weeks” is the answer, and it’s spoken on a sigh. They take several more steps before Akaashi speaks again. “California is too far.”

Tetsurou hums his agreement.

He keeps an eye on Akaashi for the rest of the trek. In the several months they’ve been living together since Bokuto went abroad for training, they haven’t often talked about missing him, but Tetsurou knows it has to be like missing a limb for both of them. They’ve been together for almost five years, living together almost three, and while Bokuto has had to travel to follow his dream before, it’s never been this far or this long. They had been kind enough to invite Tetsurou to live in their guest room for his final year of university, since Akaashi would be alone and Tetsurou’s roommate had bailed on him after two years.

If it makes it more difficult for Tetsurou to deal with his long-standing love for both of them, then that’s his own problem. Akaashi and Bokuto shouldn’t have to deal with that.

They step onto the train just as rush hour is just beginning. Soon it will fill up with college students over the next several stops, so they press toward the back and stand close together. They’re not terribly laden with the weight of groceries, but they will be standing for a bit, and it’s times like these that Tetsurou is grateful for years of volleyball conditioning.

“You know, I can take a few more of those bags,” Akaashi says as the train begins to move.

Tetsurou waves them off. “I’m fine.”

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re eager to show off your muscles.”

Tetsurou smirks. “Maybe you don’t know better. They’re very nice muscles.”

“And hard-earned, too,” Akaashi says. Their eyes sparkle with laughter. “You’re quite the catch, Kuroo-san.”

Tetsurou laughs, but it feels a little hollow. 

“Been a while since anyone admired them, so it’s nice to see they still hold some appeal. Don’t hold back on my account.” He throws a grin in Akaashi’s direction.

Akaashi takes a deep breath. “Don’t tempt me.”

Tetsurou looks up at them. They flirt on occasion, or at least he does, but Akaashi rarely meets him at that level. Their gaze doesn’t waver from him. The train slows to a stop. More passengers shove in around them, and Tetsurou has to crowd closer to Akaashi. He pushes his luck.

“Better view for you,” he says, afraid his quiet tone gives away his lack of confidence. 

Akaashi makes a show of raking their eyes up and down his frame. “It truly is my lucky day.”

Tetsurou rarely finds himself without any response; he’d like to think he’s pretty damn clever, most of the time. But somehow it’s always Akaashi who manages to knock him on his ass.

The train car lurches, and Tetsurou loses his balance. His hand ends up behind Akaashi’s shoulder, and his knee lodges itself between Akaashi’s thighs. 

He feels Akaashi’s cock pressing into his leg, hard and thick.

There’s a moment where time stops moving. Tetsurou looks up from his thigh’s new and unfortunate position and into Akaashi’s eyes, and the fire he sees there sets his entire being alight. The air sucks itself from his lungs. He runs a tongue over chapped lips.

“Sorry,” he says, the word feeling like a gasp, and he goes to move.

Akaashi reaches out and grabs his sleeve. Their fingers clutch at the fabric of his jacket.

“It’s fine,” Akaashi says, so quietly he can barely hear it. He looks down to meet their eyes again, but they’ve focused them on the dingy train floor. “Don’t…don’t move.”

Tetsurou casts his eyes to the people surrounding them. No one is watching them; everyone is focused on their own little world, their own problems. Tetsurou swallows.

“Okay,” he agrees. 

Akaashi doesn’t relent their hold on Tetsurou’s sleeve. Tetsurou brings his other hand to Akaashi’s hip, steadying them where they’re straddling him. His head and heart are both pounding when Akaashi looks back at him.

“Koutarou knows,” they say simply.

The blue in Akaashi’s eyes is clear and bright, and Tetsurou has no reason to suspect they’re lying, but if he did, he’d see the truth here. He nods slowly, not trusting himself to say anything else. 

Akaashi shifts, just a little, and they let out a sigh Tetsurou is sure he’s the only person to hear. They lean forward and rest their head against Tetsurou’s shoulder. Their hand falls away from his sleeve. He reaches up and runs his fingers through the curls at the back of Akaashi’s head. Their hair has grown longer than they usually allow, and the texture is silky and soft against Tetsurou’s skin.

When the train next stops, several people step off, and the remaining passengers spread out. Tetsurou inches himself away from Akaashi, who doesn’t try to stop him this time. With his back against a pole, he feels like he can breathe again, but not in a way he wants. He wants to be dragged back underwater with Akaashi, wants to learn to breathe in the space beside them, wants to evolve gills and never come up for air. 

Akaashi turns and leans against the back of the car, and their fingers bridge the gap between their bodies, stealing Tetsurou’s and twining them together.

They remain linked when their stop is announced and they disembark the train. They remain linked as they navigate the crowded station and emerge at street level. They remain linked as they walk back to the house they share. They don’t speak; Tetsurou has too many thoughts to parse out, and he knows they have to talk about it, knows this can’t be as simple as he wants it to be, but it feels wrong to speak about here.

They put the groceries away in tense silence. They’ve gotten a system down, at this point; Tetsurou still can’t figure out where or why things are located in their kitchen, so he unbags all the groceries and puts away the refrigerated items while Akaashi takes care of the rest. They move around each other in the effortless way of those who know each other well enough to know each step the other is going to take. Akaashi is still putting away the last few items when Tetsurou finishes with the cold items.

“Drink?” he asks.

“Sure,” Akaashi replies.

Tetsurou retreats to the far side of the kitchen and reaches underneath the bar, pulling out a bottle of wine they’d started with dinner the night prior. Two glasses is enough to finish it, and he sets them on the far side and goes around to take a seat.

He’s taking his first sip when Akaashi closes the last cabinet and joins him. They leave a barstool between themself and Tetsurou, and he’s both grateful and disappointed. 

“We should talk,” Akaashi says, not touching their wine glass.

Tetsurou nods and takes another sip from his own. Akaashi watches him intently; Tetsurou feels the weight of their gaze as he sets his glass back down on the bar.

“I’m not sure where to start,” he says eventually. 

“I can start, if you like,” Akaashi offers.

Tetsurou inclines his head. 

Akaashi purses their lips in thought. Tetsurou can’t believe how much he wants to kiss the pout away, and it almost takes him by surprise when Akaashi begins to speak. “I believe it was sometime around the time we were building the house,” they say. 

“That was two years ago,” Tetsurou can’t help but blurt.

Akaashi nods once. “We were having a disagreement about the guest room. Koutarou wanted it to connect to the master, which I told him was simply ridiculous, and he told me he wouldn’t feel right with you staying here if you were further than one door away.”

Tetsurou’s heart swells. That sounds like Bo. 

“I hadn’t yet realized the depth of my own feelings, but I knew for certain then that Koutarou loved you. I wasn’t quite ready to discuss it, because while I knew people who loved more than one person, I wasn’t familiar with how it worked or what a relationship might look like. I did some research—”

“Of course you did,” Tetsurou says, smirking.

Akaashi smiles softly. “And after we moved in, I discussed it with Koutarou. I told him I was alright with him dating you, if that’s what he wanted, because I knew how he felt. But he told me he wasn’t going to date you if I didn’t date you, too.”

Akaashi pauses to take a sip from their wine. Tetsurou’s mind reels. 

“Like I said, I wasn’t yet acquainted with my own feelings for you, or at least I wasn’t ready to acknowledge them.”

“What made you realize?” Tetsurou asks, his voice coming out more quietly than he expects.

“At the end of my first year, there was a night I was studying late in the library. I missed the trains home, and Koutarou was out of town for an away game.”

Tetsurou knows how this story ends, but he hangs on to every word like a lifeline. 

“You caught a taxi across town in the middle of the night. You knew, somehow, that I hadn’t eaten in hours. You made sure I ate and got home safe. You tucked me in because you didn’t trust me to stay up and continue studying. You stayed the night even though your campus is further than mine and you hadn’t gotten any sleep. That’s when I knew.”

“Oh,” says Tetsurou. “That was...that was a long time ago.”

“Yes,” Akaashi says, inclining their head. “It was. The wait is mostly my own fault, and for that I apologize. I was scared you would say no, and I couldn’t bear to have you taken away from me, or from Koutarou. I was selfish.”

Tetsurou runs a hand through his hair and takes another sip of his wine. “So what changed?”

“Koutarou left,” Akaashi says. “California is too far, and I have been lucky enough to live with him for long enough now that living on my own was a frightening prospect. But I knew that having you in close quarters would make things more...difficult.”

“I’m sorry—”

Akaashi holds up a hand. “But at the same time I knew we couldn’t keep this from you much longer. It’s been so hard on Koutarou, to want you so badly and keep himself from touching you.”

“Just on Koutarou?” Tetsurou asks.

Akaashi sighs. “On myself, as well. Koutarou and I agree that if nothing happened while he was gone, we would tell you together when he returned.”

Tetsurou stares. It’s a lot to take in, the concept that maybe they’ve wanted him all along. He’s struggling to form a response when Akaashi continues. 

“Allow me to prove my point.” They pull their phone out of their pocket. Tetsurou watches the movement of their wrist, the tensing of their tendon as they search for whatever they’re looking for. 

“Here,” Akaashi says, sliding their phone to him. Tetsurou looks at him, then back up at Akaashi. “Read it,” Akaashi encourages. 

Tetsurou takes a deep breath before looking down.

_ <<[img attached] _ _  
_ _ <<Kuroo fell asleep with me in our bed last night. _

_ >>!(ᵒ̤̑ ◁ ᵒ̤̑)wow!৹ᢄᵍᵎᵎ _ _  
_ _ >>U MEAN…??? _

_ <<No, Koutarou, not like that. We were watching a documentary on my laptop and he passed out. I didn’t wake him back up. _

_ >>Aw (⌣_⌣”) _ _  
_ _ >>Too bad hehe _ __  
_ >>But when I get back maybe!! _ _  
_ __ >>U think our bed will fit all of us??

_ <<I think it’s quite likely to fit an elephant if we tried, but I’d rather not. _

_ >>Nah, just us. And Kuroo, hopefully. _

_ <<Hopefully. _

He remembers the morning in question. He’d woken up with Akaashi in his arms, and he’d nearly jumped from the bed. Akaashi had been calm the way they’re always calm, but Kuroo had felt guilty all day, like he was taking something that wasn’t his to have.

It’s just a simple conversation, a few texts exchanged between lovers, but they make something in Tetsurou’s throat seize up. They want him. They want him the way he wants to be wanted.

“If you keep scrolling, you’ll be privy to a rather filthy conversation involving you as well,” Akaashi says, reaching over and taking their phone back. “But I imagine I’ve proved my point.”

Tetsurou reddens. “Yeah, point proven.”

Silence settles between them, heavy and thick. Tetsurou yearns to reach out and take Akaashi’s hand in his own again, but he’s afraid he won’t be able to stop himself. He’s afraid that now that he knows one small part, he won’t rest until he knows every part of Akaashi’s body like he knows his own.

“What about you?” Akaashi asks.

Tetsurou swallows. “On some level, the moment we met.”

Akaashi smiles wryly. “Liar.”

“No, it’s true,” Tetsurou says. “Bo had been texting me like crazy, telling me about his super awesome new setter, and he couldn’t stop spouting your praises, you know, and I knew he was gone for you already. But when we showed up at that practice game and I actually saw you...he never said how beautiful you were, you know?”

A faint pink blush appears on Akaashi’s cheeks. “You have always been talented at flattery.”

“It’s not flattery if it’s the truth,” Tetsurou argues. He blushes, too. “Anyway. I was already half in love with Bo at that point, but I knew I never had a chance with you around.”

Akaashi doesn’t reply. They pick up their glass and empty what’s left inside of it. 

“I guess that’s where you were wrong, then,” they say as they set it back down.

“I guess so,” agrees Tetsurou.

Akaashi reaches over and takes Tetsurou’s hand in their own. They seem to examine it carefully; shivers run down his spine as their eyes move from his hand to his face.

“Was that all, then?” Tetsurou asks. “Or was there anything else we needed to discuss?”

After another moment of watching him, they reach over and steal the last sip of wine from his glass. “I just have one last question,” they announce.

“Was it ‘can I finish that?’” he teases as they slide the glass back over to him.

Akaashi slides off their barstool and closes the gap between them. Tetsurou’s knees part to make space for them to get closer. Akaashi takes Tetsurou’s face in both of their hands.

“Is this what you want, Kuroo-san?” they murmur, and the way they say his name is more intimate than he’s ever imagined his family name could be said.

Tetsurou leans forward until his lips are a hair’s breadth apart from Akaashi’s. “I want you, Akaashi,” he answers. “I want you, and I want Bokuto. I’ll take whatever you give me, I’ll be part of you for as long as you’ll have me, I want—”

“Kuroo-san,” Akaashi says on an exhale. Their breath tickles the bottom of Tetsurou’s nose. “It was a simple question. You’re always so prone to complicated answers.”

“So you’ve told me,” Tetsurou replies.

“Then stop talking,” Akaashi instructs.

Tetsurou heeds their advice, finally taking their lips with his own. They taste like the wine they stole from his glass, sweet and tempting. Akaashi wraps their arms around his waist like they belong there. Tetsurou can’t help but run his own through Akaashi’s hair again, marveling at the feel of it, at the feeling of knowing he’s wanted, the feeling of finally giving in.

Akaashi slips their tongue between his lips, and Tetsurou opens his mouth to accommodate them. They kiss slowly, exploring each other’s mouths like they have all the time in the world. Tetsurou hums against them. When Akaashi pulls back, Tetsurou chases after them, stealing another kiss, and then another, causing Akaashi to laugh.

“Come on,” Akaashi breathes, their fingers wrapping around Tetsurou’s wrist. They pull him gently down off his bar stool. 

They make their way slowly toward the back of the house, neither of them willing to separate for the length of time it would take them to reach the bedroom. Instead they trip over their own and each other’s feet, their legs entangling over and over, until Tetsurou swears quietly and picks Akaashi up. Akaashi wraps their legs around Tetsurou’s waist and their arms around his neck. 

They only make it as far as the leather sofa in the bedroom. Tetsurou sinks to his knees as he sets Akaashi down on the seat, and still they manage not to let each other go. Tetsurou’s lips find Akaashi’s again, less sloppy now that they’re no longer in motion. Akaashi leans forward and lifts the bottom of Tetsurou’s shirt with impatient fingers. When they fumble, Tetsurou grins against their mouth and takes over for them, removing his shirt and tossing it to the side. 

Akaashi sits back for a moment and takes their bottom lip between their teeth. The hand that reaches forward to touch Tetsurou’s chest is almost hesitant, shaking when it makes contact. Tetsurou can’t help but curl his fingers around Akaashi’s own, holding them flush against his skin.

“Kuroo…” Akaashi breathes.

Tetsurou closes the gap between their mouths again, and Akaashi’s hand clenches around his own. They’re both a little desperate, a little frantic. Tetsurou supposes that wanting each other for so long means all their pent-up feelings are that much stronger.

Tetsurou pulls back to fumble with the button on Akaashi’s jeans, but Akaashi puts their hand on top of his.

“Wait,” they instruct. “I want...just, wait a minute.”

They press one quick kiss against his lips before standing and crossing over to the bedside table. Tetsurou watches as they rummage around in a drawer and withdraw a condom and lube. When they return, they toss both on the couch.

“I’d like you to fuck me,” Akaashi says, undoing the top button on their shirt. “Is that alright with you?” 

“Yes,” Tetsurou agrees, swallowing hard.

He sits back, watching as Akaashi slowly strips. Some part of him is certain he’ll have to wait for Akaashi to fold everything before they can continue, but to his surprise, their shirt is dumped unceremoniously on top of his own and not given any more thought before they continue on to their jeans. Tetsurou swallows as the long expanse of their legs is revealed. He’s always admired the strong curve of their thighs, not as muscular as Bokuto’s but still thick. Their cock is long, already mostly erect and leaking. Akaashi sits back on the sofa, spreading their legs and making eye contact with Tetsurou again.

Tetsurou runs his hands along the outside of their thighs and up to their hips. With his mouth, he starts at the inside of Akaashi’s knee and kisses a path up to their groin. Akaashi becomes increasingly breathless above him, and Tetsurou listens for each change in their breathing pattern, trying to catalogue every reaction in his mind.

When he nears their groin, Akaashi twitches. “Kuroo…” they murmur. “I don’t want to be teased tonight.”

“Another time, then?” Tetsurou says, and he can’t help but smirk up at them.

Akaashi huffs and presses the lube into his hands. “We’ll see.”

Tetsurou laughs quietly and uncaps the bottle, drizzling some over his fingers before setting it aside. Akaashi scoots down until they’re hanging slightly off the couch cushion. 

“You’re sure about this?” Tetsurou can’t help but ask.

Akaashi sighs. “Tetsurou.”

Tetsurou looks up and meets their gaze. Akaashi looks back, steady and certain.

“Keiji,” he breathes.

Akaashi cradles his jaw with their hand. “I’m sure.”

Tetsurou closes his eyes and leans into their touch for a moment. “Okay. Me, too.”

Akaashi tucks a loose hair behind his ear and smiles at him. A shiver makes its way through Tetsurou’s body.

With the first press of his finger inside them, Akaashi moans his name. Tetsurou smiles and presses his forehead to the inside of their thigh. They reach down and pet the hair at the nape of his neck as he works. It’s quiet in the room, just the sound of Akaashi’s labored breathing and occasional hums or moans of pleasure filling the air. Tetsurou adds a second finger, and then a third, as Akaashi opens up for him. By the time he adds a fourth finger, Akaashi is trembling beneath his touch.

“Please,” they whisper. They wrench open their eyes (he doesn’t know when they closed them) and stare at him, need clear in their feverish gaze. “I’m ready, please.”

“Okay,” Tetsurou agrees. He pulls out quickly and stands to shimmy out of his pants. Akaashi doesn’t blink or look away the entire time he’s reaching for the condom or rolling it over himself. They lay down with their back on the couch, their legs spread wide to allow him space. Their eyes lock onto each other’s as he lines himself up.

“I’ve got you,” Tetsurou says, a promise he doesn’t intend to break.

Akaashi is calm as he pushes himself inside, a small, content sigh passing over their lips. Tetsurou leans down and kisses them, deciding it’s been too long that he’s been apart from their mouth. Akaashi smiles when he moves to their cheek and kisses them there, and then their forehead, and then their jaw. When he’s fully inside, he sits up just enough to see their whole face. They reach up and brush their thumb along his cheekbone.

“Beautiful,” they whisper.

Tetsurou blushes. “So are you, Keiji,” he says earnestly.

Akaashi bites their lip; Tetsurou watches the line of their throat as they swallow. “Say my name again,” they request.

“Keiji,” Tetsurou says. He moves his hips back, then forward, and Akaashi’s eyes fall shut. “Keiji, Keiji, Keiji…”

It’s the soundtrack of their name that Tetsurou moves. His chant aligns with each thrust of his hips. Akaashi’s head sinks back into the sofa and they lift their bottom half off the cushion, meeting each of Tetsurou’s movements. 

Heat builds slowly as their pace begins to increase. Tetsurou would be content to spend hours like this, filling Akaashi over and over and watching each twist of their face and bite of their lip, but something like molten lava begins to fill him up, threatening to burn him from inside out. His head falls forward, resting against Akaashi’s collarbone. Akaashi’s hands grip his back and sink into his skin.

“Keiji, I’m so close,” he says, his voice hoarse. “Keiji, Keiji…”

“Let me feel it,” Akaashi answers. “Come on, Tetsurou, come inside me.”

“Oh, Keiji--!”

Tetsurou’s rhythm stutters and grinds to a halt as he finishes, stars bursting behind his eyelids. He shakes all over, his arms trembling violently where they’re holding him up. Akaashi is patient, despite their cock being trapped between them. They murmur praise as Tetsurou comes down from his orgasm. His chest heaves.

“Gods, Keiji,” he breathes. “I’m sorry, you probably want--”

“If you let me on top, I can finish,” they offer, a bit of laughter in their voice.

Tetsurou grunts and begins to fuck them again, and now Akaashi really does laugh, at least for a moment. They slip a hand between their bodies and begin to stroke themselves, and they take a long breath. 

“That’s it, Keiji,” Tetsurou babbles. “You look so pretty like this, so pretty when you’re making yourself feel good…”

“Tetsurou,” Akaashi groans. “Keep--keep talking, please--”

“You’re so perfect,” he says. He presses his nose against their cheek, his lips against their ear. “Keiji, I can’t believe you’re real, I can’t believe you’re finally mine, Keiji, sweetheart--”

“Close,” they pant. “Come on, come on, Tetsurou--”

“Keiji,” he presses his lips to their skin, “Keiji, come for me, let me see you, love, Keiji, I love you, please--”

Tetsurou can feel the way Akaashi clenches around him as they come, the heat from their release spurting up between their chests. Akaashi’s eyes close as aftershocks pass through them. Tetsurou buries his face against their neck.

It’s several minutes before he can bring himself to move. When he does, he places a kiss on Akaashi’s cheek and murmurs “I’ll be right back.” 

He’s never been in the master bathroom before. It’s huge and gleaming; Tetsurou thinks closer examination of the tub would reveal jets, but he’s busy and will have to sate that particular curiosity later. He ditches his condom in the trash. He finds a washcloth and runs the water until it’s warm before returning to Akaashi.

Back on his knees beside the couch, he runs his fingers through Akaashi’s hair. Their eyes are still shut, but one pops open as Tetsurou runs the washcloth over their chest to rinse away their release. Tetsurou doesn’t meet their eyes, focusing instead on his task. After a moment, Akaashi lifts their hand and sets it on top of Tetsurou’s.

“Thank you,” they murmur.

Tetsurou swallows, suddenly nervous. “Yeah.”

Akaashi sits up slowly, still keeping Tetsurou’s hand grasped in their own. They lean forward until they can rest their cheek on their fist. The hand that was holding Tetsurou’s moves to brush hair out of his face.

“Your sex hair is even messier than your normal hair,” they observe, a small smile tugging at their lips. “I didn’t think it was possible.”

Tetsurou huffs. “Nothing helps it.”

“I have always thought it was cute,” Akaashi says. “Perhaps even cuter this way.”

Red creeps up into Tetsurou’s face. “You’ve spent years giving me a hard time about it.”

“I get just as much fun out of teasing you as you do out of teasing me, Tetsurou,” Akaashi says. They sit up straight and arch their back. “Come lay down with me.”

“You’re not hungry?”

“Dinner can wait.” 

Akaashi leads him over to the bed. Tetsurou curls up in the fetal position; Akaashi drapes themself around him, spooning him from behind.

“Post-coital skin to skin contact is very important to me,” they murmur into the top of his spine.

Tetsurou snorts. “You can just say cuddling.”

“Alright. Cuddling is very important to me.”

Their hand snakes around his waist and finds one of his, twining their fingers together. They rub circles into the back of his thumb. Tetsurou swallows and sighs.

“Sorry about what I said,” he says. He squeezes his eyes shut. “Heat of the moment and all that.”

“Was that all it was?” Akaashi asks quietly.

Tetsurou doesn’t want to start a relationship by lying, but he’s terrified of what they might be thinking. They’ve always been much more talented at masking their emotions than Bokuto or even Kuroo himself. 

“It’s okay if it wasn’t,” they whisper. “I feel the same.”

“You do?” Tetsurou questions.

Akaashi’s lips ghost against his back. “Yes. And Koutarou does, too.”

Tetsurou feels suddenly winded. He presses himself further back into Akaashi, who seems to understand and tightens their grip.

“There’s nothing to be frightened of,” they murmur. “I’ve got you, too.”

“Okay,” Tetsurou says. He knows it’s true, but it’s still hard to believe. He’ll spend all night convincing himself this hasn’t been an elaborate fever dream. “Can you tell me again?”

“As many times as you need,” Akaashi answers. “I love you. I love you. I love you…”

**Author's Note:**

> if i told you i dreamt the house before i established the plot would you believe me because that's what happened  
> expect more in this universe we're coming back to it  
> [socials here](https://joshllyman.carrd.co)


End file.
